The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1887-05-29

Bishop starkey Tells Something of Jer-
sey Ctty's Needs.

btJ NAt1Ss NeeuAs
NEWARK, May u.s. Bishop Starkey, in
his address at the opening of the Tenth
Dioce san Convention of tho Newark Epis-
copal Diocese, in Trinity Church in this
city, the other day, made reference to the
needs of the church in Jersey City. SIN
the lower part of the city," he said, ''there
is population of $4,000 people whose
Spiritual needs are supplied by three of
our churches with a seating capacity of
gabout l, 500 persons. 1t seems but meagre
provisions for such demand; yet, not
withstanding this, two of our churches
have of late years rather retrograded than
advanced. while another, st. Marks, is
comparatively recent, although very sue
cessful, revival of parish which had for
some years ceased to exist One is almost dis
posed to ask himself, in half despairing
way, whether the Church is always to re-
main blind to the new conditions under
which she exists and does her work in this
modern age. The changes of the renais-
sance in literature, art and civil polity
which preceded and ushered in the rslig-
ious upheavals of the Sixteenth century
were scarcely greater; perhaps they were
not so great as those others, social and
economic, which mark the times in which
we live. Neither the church of the cul-
tured or wealthy nor the church of the poor
and unrestful classes will ever prove the
solvent which is to join these two extremes
into one harmonious whole. The day
of Congregational Episcopacy, which is
but another name for the day of fashiona-
BILE churches and luxurious pews, of SLOW
emily or of dainty services, of congregations
which are little better than Sunday relg-
fono at1hc 10 olOuulu no To
meet these new conditions we need a new
spirit and, to some extent, new methods.
We need clergy self-denying and devoted.
with tact to meet and deal with men and
with wisdom to influence them. We need,
too, godly and Jealous laity, with sympa-
thies that reach out beyond the contracted
limits of mere parish boundaries and with
sense of responsibilities as deep as their
convictions are firmly rooted or their SYM
pathies broad. There is profound lesson
for those who are willing to learn it, in the
relation so distressingly unsatisfactory
which modern religionisn sustains to the
restless and even the laboripg classes of
our great city populations of to-day 1t
will be our wisdom and our grace if we
learn the lesson in time or our folly and
our sin if we refuse it until the night COM
eth when men do not work but dream"
He said St. Panl's Church. Hoboken. has
more than doubled its congregation since
its present rector took charge. A new rec.
tory has besn built and the church has been
i'm proved. In the Church of the Holy In
nocents, Hoboken, two OF the All SAINTS
Sisters are engaged in parochial work. In
the Church or the Holy Trinity, Hoboken,
new school buildings have been erected.
st. Johns Church, Jersey City, has added
to its staff of clergy and enlarged its infu-
ence and work. ST. Marks Church, in
that city, continues its career of prosper.
ity, and will soon need larger building to
accommodate its increasing congregation,